Loving a Bad Boy (32 page)

Julio stepped out onto the bedroom terrace
and took in the beauty of the setting sun. The surface of the water
was a mirror reflecting the clear sky. Everything appeared so calm,
quiet. Taking a seat in one of the patio chairs, he leaned back to
accept the serenity of the sound of the crashing waves. Eyes
closed, his mind drifted to Pam sleeping comfortably inside.
Despite how tired he was, sleep eluded him.

Pam
. She came to him without guile, offering her body without
reserve. Even though he accepted she was his woman, it bothered him
that he hadn’t been honest with her about his life. He should’ve
told her the moment her home had been violated. What if some
asshole came at her again, and hurt her? His view of the water
shifted slightly as panic spread across his chest.

He thought of all the
deeds done by his hand without a flicker of remorse, yet the idea
of her hit in any crossfire burned his gut. He rubbed his eyes.
What the hell could he do?
Right now,
nothing
. Francisco was still riding his
ass over this unsanctioned trip.

Guilt pricked him.

He ran his hand through his hair. His jaw
tightened in annoyance. Is this what being in a relationship was
all about? Out of control emotions doggedly tearing him apart? He
jumped from lust to anger to jealousy to fear all in a matter of
seconds. Figure in the protectiveness and he was in the Twilight
Zone spinning his wheels.

Love was
weird
.

Just when he could admit his feelings to
himself, his conscience demanded he let her go if he loves her. She
brought color to his bleak life. How was he supposed to live in the
gray areas?

There had to be a way for him to keep Pam in
his life. His mom told him to think outside the box, find a way to
have it all. Her testimony of her miserable life growing up didn’t
offer much hope. Still she pushed him to find love, a woman and
even a family. Damn was that even possible? What they hell did she
know that he didn’t? The thought of talking to her filled him with
dread. He wasn’t ready to take that step.

The honorable thing would
be to break this off now.
Honorable
? Could he do that? If he
had been capable of that type of honor, he would have kept his
hands
and
mouth
off her. And his dick
out
of her.

The pounding surf agreed that honor demanded
he step away from her. Yet, he hesitated to agree. Perhaps… maybe
they could change things up a bit. Give one another space, agree to
date other people. His stomach recoiled at the idea of another man
receiving the warmth of her smile. The sweetness of her lips and
mouth. Or the feel of her hot, tight pussy.

Sweat broke across his
brow. With each visual his fist tightened. The sound of his
grinding teeth reached his ears. Dots danced beneath his lids as
another visual of her and another crossed his confused mind. He
released a pent up breath and inhaled quickly.
Relax
. Don’t go there. Thinking of
her with someone else killed every scrap of honor in his body. He
could
not, would not
do it.

“
So it’s you.” A masculine
voice with a faint accent sneered from the shadows of the
patio.

Julio jumped up before the
sentence was complete. Heart slamming in his chest, his hand flew
to his waist, and he withdrew his pistol. He pointed it in the
direction of the voice. The contempt in those three words hit
him.
What the hell
? The voice sounded familiar, but he couldn’t be sure. Had
someone followed him from Miami? The guys who hit Tex? Or the ones
who wrote on Pam’s wall?

He peered into the shadows at the edge of
the patio, his finger on the trigger as he inched away from the
sliding glass door. Thoughts of Pam getting hurt was the only thing
that kept him from firing. “Get the fuck outta here,” he
snarled.

“
Just came to see the
competition.” There was a hint of smugness in the tone.

Baffled, Julio peered into
the shadows and saw nothing. “Competition?” So this
was
about business. The
gun run that had gone bad? Had Roberto grown a pair and sent
someone to take him out? His fingers steadied on the pistol.
Adrenaline pumped through him as his anger spiked.

He moved slightly behind the chair in which
he’d been sitting. Not that it was much of a barrier. But Pam was
inside and this asshole was not getting anywhere near her.

“
Just curious.”

Julio tried to pinpoint the sound. “You know
what they say about curiosity,” he snapped. Being more of an action
guy, talking to this fool pissed him off, but he wanted to make
sure his shot wasn’t wasted. It was important to make an
impression, one that this asshole would carry with him.

“
Cat killing? On Cat
Island. No. Not today. I knew you’d be trouble the moment I saw
you. Now, I think I’m going to enjoy this.” The Keenan Ivory Wayans
look-alike from the airport stepped from the shadows with a
sardonic grin and open palms.

Julio’s gaze flickered and then hardened as
recognition dawned. Refusing to give voice to his rising fury, he
raised his gun toward his adversary’s chest. “I ain’t amused. You
got ten seconds to get off this property before I Swiss cheese your
ass,” he said low, his tone deadly as he mentally prepared his
shot.

The man held up his hands and grinned wider.
“There are other ways to see the inside of our prison system.” He
stared at Julio a second longer. Obviously he realized his strategy
was not working. His face sobered into stern lines. “I’m Boots. The
girl is mine. Her father promised her to me years ago.”

The words hung in the air. Julio’s chest
expanded as the need to exterminate this vermin raced through him.
He changed the angle of the gun, pointing it toward the bastard’s
head. “Five… six… seven—”

Boots stepped back, his eyes darkened. A
scowl covered his face. “Touch her again and I’ll cut your dick off
and feed it to you.” He jumped off the patio just as Julio pulled
the trigger.

He ran to the edge of the terrace and looked
around. On one side there was the ocean. On the other, the side
where Boots had jumped, was a rocky landing a few feet down. This
area wasn’t supposed to be accessible, but that theory had just
been proven wrong.

Whirling, gun high, Julio pointed as Tex and
Hog came barreling through the still open sliding glass door. Tex
reached him first. Hog bypassed him and searched the area.

“
What happened?” Tex asked
while looking him over.

Julio’s chest heaved now that the moment was
over. “One of the guys from the airport came to talk.” He tipped
his head toward Hog; this conversation would have to wait.

Tex, picking up the cue, nodded. “You
okay?”

“
Yeah. Pam?”

Tex snorted. “I don’t know how she sleeps
with that loud music on, but she’s still out of it.”

Julio nodded. His stomach
was settling just as the words Boots spoke
resonated
. Her father gave her to some
dude
? Obviously her old man had a death
wish. If she wanted to shoot him for that bullshit earlier, no
telling what she’d do knowing this. Pivoting, he moved
inside.

Pam sat up, earplugs intact, clutching the
cover over her nakedness. Julio glared at Tex, who shrugged and
walked out. Hog entered a moment later, locked the glass door,
nodded at Pam, and left the room.

Her eyes widened when they exited, and then
zeroed in on him. He read curiosity, not fear, in her gaze. His
chest expanded, this time in pride and amazement. Standing near the
bed, he waited until the door closed softly behind Hog before
moving to the bed.

“
I woke you up?” he asked,
wondering if she'd recognized the popping sound of a
gunshot.

She shook her head. “I think it was Tex and
that big guy running through here. I felt the floor shake. At least
I think that’s what it was.” Tilting her head to the side she
peered at him. “You went outside?”

“
Yeah. I was wiped. You
know how it is when you’re too tired to sleep?”

She nodded.

He raked his hand through his hair again.
“That’s me.” He yawned and stretched wide. “Tired and wired.”

He met her stare. “You always carry a gun
with you? Even on the patio?” Her brow rose as she waited for his
reply.

“
No. I’m still pissed over
what happened back home. Somebody broke into my house, and yours.
They robbed me and messed up your crib. I’m a paranoid mutha over
that shit. I don’t know this place or anybody here ‘cept my team.
And they can’t come in here, not when I’m with you. So, yeah. I
carry a gun.” He removed the gun from his waist holster and placed
it on the table next to his side of the bed. “I can put it in the
drawer if it makes you feel better.” He glanced at her while he
stripped naked.

She scooted over while holding onto the
covers. “That kind of defeats the purpose, doesn’t it?”

He slid in next to her and pulled her close.
Her citrusy smelling shampoo tickled his nostrils. He nuzzled his
face into her hair and inhaled.

She shivered in his arms.

Calm settled over him. This was where he
needed to be. Perhaps it was the normalcy that she offered, or the
honest way she responded to him as a man. Nothing had ever rocked
him as hard as when she looked at him with eyes full of admiration.
It was more potent than any high he’d ever experienced. Humbled, he
lost the ability to speak and rubbed her scalp with his chin
instead.

“
Ummmm. That’s nice,” she
said, relaxing on his chest.

He smiled and pinched one of her nipples.
She stuck her chest out further. Lying back on the pillow, the
words Boots spoke thrummed through him. “Pam?”

“
Hmm?” Her voice was lazy,
aroused.

“
You said you talked with
your old man.” She stilled beneath his hand. He pressed on. “Did he
mention wanting you to meet someone?”

She leaned back and looked up at him.
“What?…He wanted me to go with him earlier and meet some family
members.” She frowned. “Why?”

His fingertips stroked the front of her
forehead and then massaged her scalp as he thought how much to
tell. “I met a guy at the airport. Said his name was Boots and that
your daddy had promised you to him.”

She shot into a sitting position, her
shoulder bumping his nose, and looked down at him as he rubbed the
bruised spot. “What?” She shook her head as if to clear it. “What’d
you say? Some guy said daddy promised me to him?” she asked with a
get-real look on her face.

Something, akin to relief, unknotted within
him. She really had no idea what the dude was talking about. That
was significant as far as he was concerned. “Yep. Told me to leave
you alone.”

She frowned. “You? Why would he say anything
to you? You just got here.”

It was his turn to frown. “You didn’t tell
your daddy about me?”

“
Good lord.” She flopped
back on the bed. “I
did
tell him you were coming today. As in I just
mentioned it right before you got here.” She covered her eyes with
her arm. “He wanted me to leave for a few days and meet some
people, at least that’s what he said.”

“
This guy seemed to think
you belonged to him. I didn’t like his claim and shot at him.” He
waited until she turned toward him. Wide eyed she looked at him. He
nodded. “He told me to leave you alone and instead of telling him
to kiss my ass, I tried to put a bullet his. Slippery bitch. I
missed and he got away.”

She swallowed, tilted her head to the side
and spoke. “For real? You shot at somebody?”

Their eyes locked. This part of him she
needed to accept. “Yeah. He showed up on the patio a minute ago.
Started talking shit. Understand this, I don’t like other men
trying to take my woman from me. I don’t share or play well with
others, especially when it comes to you. Guess I’ve been bitten by
the green bug.”

A ghost of a smile flitted across her face.
She pushed her hair from around her mouth. “Jealous?”

He nodded. “Yeah. I am. That’s not a good
thing. Never give me a reason for it.”

She crawled up without breaking eye contact.
The sheet fell from around her waist as she settled naked on his
lap. Her palms rested on his chest as she leaned into him. “Me too.
And I won’t.” Her lips brushed against his. “I would never leave
knowing you were coming to see me.”

He wasn’t sure what he’d expected from his
declaration. Fear, anger, moral outrage, a lecture, all of those
had been possibilities. Not only did she accept this facet of his
character, he was about to get a reward. He appreciated the way her
mind worked. Complicated had become the new sexy.

His teeth latched onto her juicy bottom lip.
He ran his tongue across the length of it. She pulled back and
wiped her thumb across his lip. She looked up at him through her
lashes. “You know that goes both ways. I have a gun and I’m not
afraid to use it.”

He laughed at her attempt to be coy. He
wrapped her in his arms and kissed her temple. “I’m glad you didn’t
leave.”

She pinched his nipple. “Yeah? Just how glad
are you?” Her voice coy.

Rolling her beneath him, he latched onto her
mouth. “Very,” he whispered, tracing her ear with the tip of his
tongue. He grasped it gently between his teeth, eliciting a sexy
gasp from her.

“
Ahhh.” She shuddered,
holding him tighter.